What Did the Court Do?

Before this court case, gay and lesbian people in California could be together for years - even for life - but they couldn't get "married".

A few couples thought that gay people should have the same right to marry as straight people, and they took their case to court.

On May 15, the California Supreme Court agreed with the couples.

The court said: "Because of the long and celebrated history of the term 'marriage' . . . there clearly is a considerable and undeniable symbolic importance to this designation."

So, starting soon, gay and lesbian couples can get married.

The case is final. It can't go to a higher court.

However, the voters in California can overturn the decision by voting to amend the state's constitution. And they might do that this November.

California joins just one other state - Massachusetts - as the only places in the U.S. where gay people can get married.

They're the only places where gay and lesbian people are truly equal.

Can the Right to Marry be Lost?

The California Supreme Court looked at the state constitution and ruled that gay and lesbian people have the right to get married. Just like straight people.

But the voters can take that right away by amending the state constitution.

Opponents of gay marriage have already handed in over a million signatures to place a constitutional amendment on the California ballot. The amendment would override the court decision and take the right to get married away from gay and lesbian people.

The vote on the constitutional amendment will be this November, on the same day as the presidential election.

If the amendment fails, gay and lesbian people in California will keep their right to get married.

If the amendment passes, gays and lesbians will lose the right to marry in California. And, because it's a constitutional amendment, there's nothing that any court or any politician can do to get that right back.

Why Do We Have to Call it "Marriage"?

Some people say gay and lesbian couples don't need to be able to call their relationship a "marriage."

But they do.

When a couple gets married, they're telling each other that their commitment is going to last.

Marriage is also the way that a couple describes their commitment to the outside world. Everyone knows what it means when someone says "we're married."

When gay and lesbian people aren't allowed to get married, the message is that their relationship isn't as important as straight peoples'.

But it is.

So shouldn't we call it the same thing?

I'm Gay and I'm Not Getting Married. Why Should I Care?

The California Supreme Court has just allowed gay and lesbian people to get married.

Maybe you don't plan to get married anytime soon - or maybe not ever.

So you may be wondering why this decision matters to you. Here's why:

In other states, a gay couple may have some of the same rights and benefits as a straight couple, but they still can't call their union a "marriage."

Lots of people think that's the way it should be. They want gay couples to be treated differently from straight couples, because they think gay couples are different.

But they aren't different.

Until a gay couple's relationship is treated the same as a straight couple's, every gay and lesbian person is a second-class citizen -- regardless of whether they ever get married.

I Don't Live in California. How Does This Affect Me?

California is only the second state in the nation to recognize the right of gay people to get married. The first state was Massachusetts.

If you live in one of the other 48 states, you may wonder what California has to do with you.

California matters to everyone. It's the biggest state, one of the most liberal states, and it's a trendsetter for the rest of the country.

Once people see gay and lesbian couples marrying in California, they'll begin to realize that the time has come for full marriage equality - not only for Californians, but for everyone in the country.

On the other hand, if marriage is stopped in California, then it can be stopped anywhere.

This November, California will vote on a constitutional amendment to ban gays and lesbians from marrying. If it passes, the right to marry will be lost for generations. It's going to be the biggest battle that gay and lesbian people have ever faced.

Every American, in every state, will be profoundly affected by what happens in California this November.